In the past, we accepted certain limitations in mobile content and speed because it was the actual, real web on a mobile device! But as Strangeloop president Joshua Bixby (@joshuabixby) notes in the following interview, that mode of thinking is on its way out. Now, most customers expect a full and fast web experience whether they're on a desktop, tablet or phone. The companies that offer that are poised to succeed. And for those that don't, ridicule will be the least of their concerns.

Should companies be thinking "mobile first" now?

Joshua Bixby: We talk about "the web" and "the mobile web" as if the two are different, but they aren't. I'm the first to admit that I'm as guilty of doing this as the next person. Using these terms is helpful for discussing differences in how people browse via different devices, but at the end of the day, it's all one web. Users want the same breadth and depth of content, no matter what device they're using. They want a consistent, reliable user experience. They don't want to interact with your site one way at their desks, then learn a whole new way when they're tablet-surfing on the couch, and then learn a third way when they're roaming around with their phones. Site owners who can deliver an experience that feels the same, regardless of the platform, are the ones who are going to own the web of the not-too-distant future.

Will all phones be smartphones at some point? Or will non-smartphones remain an important segment for years to come?

Joshua Bixby: It really depends on which market you look at. Last summer, comScore published a survey that showed that, despite the rapid rate of smartphone adoption, 155 million American mobile phone users still don't have smartphones. That's obviously a pretty significant number. But if you take a global view, things flip around and we see that, especially in developing countries, new mobile users are jumping right on the smartphone wagon. This allows users to bypass both dumb phones and the desktop web. It's a whole different way of interacting with the Internet.

I think an even better question might be: How great a disruptor will tablets be to the mobile market? Site owners have been caught with their mobile pants down, so to speak, in their inability to recognize the importance of this market. Forrester did a survey of retailers and found that, on average, about 20% of holiday mobile traffic came via tablets, with some retailers reporting that more than half their mobile traffic came via tablets. But most "mobile-optimized" sites look terrible on tablets. In 2012, site owners are going to be scrambling to catch up with this paradigm shift.

Should mobile app development be prioritized over mobile site development?

Joshua Bixby: Mobile apps will continue to have a role for repeat, loyal users of an online store or service, but it's incredibly narrow-sighted of companies to focus on app development over site development. People are always going to want to access the full public Internet. It's circa-1995, AOL-style thinking to assume otherwise.

I've seen scenario after scenario where apps present a huge usability problem because they don't anticipate the various ways that the web and apps intersect. Media sites are some of the worst culprits. Here's a common scenario: You're checking your Twitter feed and click on a link, but instead of taking you to the article, you're funneled to an intermediary "download our app" page. Often, this is a demand, not a request. There's no way to bypass this app block. And then say you do download the app — after it's installed, you don't even get served the article you originally wanted to see. You just get served the home page of the site, so you have to go back to Twitter and find the original link again.